The Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has electronic waste (e-waste) collection centres across the state and has provisions for pick-up in large quantities; however, electronic dealers in the state prefer to deal with scrap collectors.

Kelechi Eze, a gadget vendor in the state’s island area, says it is not out of defiance but a business decision, and, in many cases, a lack of information on proper disposal methods.

E-waste refers to waste items with electronic components (televisions, computers, mobile phones, etc.) usually made of deadly chemicals such as lead, cadmium, beryllium and mercury.

Improper disposal of such devices increases the chances of environmental contamination and endangers human life, but there’s not enough orientation about proper disposal, and instead of contacting the appropriate agencies, vendors rely on scrap collectors to dispose their e-waste.

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Eze, for instance, told FIJ that no matter how bad a phone is, it is rarely useless.

”I don’t throw phones away. No matter how bad they are, there is always someone who will buy them. And even when they get bad, the components are usually repurposed and used for other phones. And if it has no utility for me anymore, I sell it to scrap collectors. They usually come to ask for it,” he told FIJ on a phone call.

The handling process of spoiled electronics by scrap collectors, however, violates safety measures and exposes them, those around them and the environment to hazardous risks.

It is due to these risks that the Private Sector Partnership (PSP) operators do not pick up e-waste.

“Your PSP operators that come to your residential or commercial areas will not collect e-waste materials from you because the vehicle is not designed for such,” LAWMA wrote in response to FIJ’s inquiry about e-waste disposal.

To dispose e-waste, “write a letter addressing the managing director of LAWMA, that you want us to help in evacuating your e-waste. Also, take a picture of the device you want to dispose.”

”This is a one-off procedure. If you need information or anything next time, you can reach out to the unit in charge for more directives,” they said.

Following this directive, FIJ sent an email to the agency with a photo of a damaged device, but there had been no response at press time.

When we asked Eze if he knew about any LAWMA e-waste collection centres around his area or if he had ever contacted them for inquiries about e-waste disposal, he said no.

Victor, a phone and computer repairer in Computer Village, expressed similar sentiments as Eze.

Although he comes into contact with damaged electronic products daily, he does not take his waste to the collection centre.

”I just keep them in my shop. If scrap people come, I sell it to them, or sometimes some parts can be useful. So I just pack them in my shop.”